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Creating Sustainable Waste Management Programs Sustainable Trash Liner Options Choosing Biodegradable And Compostable Bags Selecting Sustainable Waste Receptacles BY Kassandra Kania Sponsors googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-dfp-ad-text1'); }); googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-dfp-ad-text2'); }); googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-dfp-ad-text3'); }); googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-dfp-ad-text4'); }); if($("#div-dfp-ad-text1").find("a").length > 0){$("#textSponsors").show();} if($("#div-dfp-ad-text2").find("a").length > 0){$("#textSponsors").show();} if($("#div-dfp-ad-text3").find("a").length > 0){$("#textSponsors").show();} if($("#div-dfp-ad-text4").find("a").length > 0){$("#textSponsors").show();} As businesses focus on building sustainable waste management programs, a number of them are assessing a once-overlooked commodity in the trash removal process: the receptacle liner. More often than not these trash bags 鈥� along with the billions of other plastic bags used every year 鈥� do not contain recycled content and are not recycled after use. In fact, sustainable liners are usually one of the gaps in facilities鈥� green programs, according to Bill McGarvey, director of training and sustainability for Philip Rosenau Co. Inc., Warminster, Pennsylvania.鈥淐hemicals and paper products, as well as a lot of the equipment, speak to a departments鈥� sustainability efforts, but liners are traditionally something we use one time and then throw away,鈥� he notes. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e a commodity item, so price is always a concern. They鈥檙e also one of the most volatile items in the cleaning industry because they鈥檙e tied to the ebb and flow of the petroleum market.鈥漌hile facilities will always need trash liners, cleaning departments can take steps to reduce their consumption of plastic bags and ensure that the liners they do use meet sustainability guidelines set forth by environmental standards organizations. According to McGarvey, facility cleaning managers are already moving in that direction. 鈥淢anagers are getting smarter about how they use liners and how they handle their waste,鈥� he says.First and foremost, custodial cleaning staffs should assess whether or not a trash liner is truly necessary. 鈥淏ags are important when facilities have wet waste,鈥� says Stephen Ashkin, president of The Ashkin Group in Los Angeles. 鈥淚f there鈥檚 no bag in the can, it can create problems for the janitorial staff because they may have to wash the receptacles. For a lot of desk-side bins, there鈥檚 often no need for a liner because you鈥檙e dealing with paper waste. But many departments tend to use one out of habit.鈥滱ccording to Ashkin, eliminating liners where they aren鈥檛 essential requires occupant education. 鈥淧eople need to understand if they have food waste they should take it to a designated location,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey shouldn鈥檛 just dump it into a desk-side bin.鈥滷acilities can also benefit from right-sizing both the liners and the trash receptacles. 鈥淥ne of our recommendations is to try and standardize the size of the cans around the facility, otherwise you end up with various bag sizes,鈥� says Mark Petruzzi, senior vice president of outreach and strategic relations for Green Seal, Washington, D.C. 鈥淣ot only is it confusing, but you may end up using a bag that鈥檚 too big, which is a waste of plastic. Also, if it doesn鈥檛 fit perfectly and something heavy gets thrown in there, the bag gets pulled in with it, and then you have a mess.鈥漅ight-sizing applies not only to the size of the bag but the thickness of the liner. If the liner is too thin, it may tear, spilling its contents and creating more work for custodians. To avoid this problem, janitors will frequently double-bag receptacles. 鈥淒epartments lose money by doing that, and they鈥檙e doubling the environmental impacts,鈥� says Ashkin. 鈥淎nd if the bag is too thick, they鈥檙e again wasting money and environmental resources.鈥� POSTED ON: 11/25/2016 - See more at: http://www.cleanlink.com/hs/article/Creating-Sustainable-Waste-Management-Programs--20235#sthash.zRRHxXEL.dpuf
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